£1.1 million to address loneliness in the West of England

5 Apr 2026 07:40 PM

St Monica Trust has been awarded £250,000 from our National Lottery Place Partnerships Fund to lead on All Together Now, a flagship cultural initiative in the West of England.

Our support brings the total investment in the partnership to £1.1 million, with additional support from the West of England Combined Authority, Bristol Beacon, the Grateful Society and Sirona Care & Health.

At the heart of the new programme is the shared aim to help over 4,000 people feel less isolated. Partners will launch a targeted programme of creative events over the next two and a half years.

Funding recipient St Monica Trust will work with over 50 organisations spanning culture, health, higher education and local government to help people in these communities feel a stronger sense of belonging.

Lead delivery partner Bristol Beacon will bring together a consortium of local organisations to help connect residents with creative activities and remove barriers to participation.

As the first major cross-regional initiative of the West of England Impact Alliance, All Together Now will take high-quality arts, culture and creativity to ‘forgotten postcodes’ across the subregion. Creative activities will be delivered in six communities identified as having a higher risk of loneliness. This includes four local geographies: Stockwood, Charfield, Somer Valley and the Mendip Villages. Other activities will target older people from Global Majority backgrounds and young people who identify as disabled.

Plans also include a creative employability programme for young people not in education, work, or training. By July 2028, the programme intends to:

Residents in each community will be able to shape the activities happening in their neighbourhood, deciding what they want to see and how the work will be delivered. Events will take place in pubs, train stations, local community centres, shopping centres, churches and village halls – and even on the road, such as a musical bus in the Mendips.

“Through the St Monica Trust’s partnership with local communities, charities and other organisations, initiatives like All Together Now can address the causes of loneliness and maximise our impact, rather than individual grants acting as a sticking plaster for societal issues,” says David Williams, Chief Executive of the St Monica Trust.

“Recognising the creativity and talent we have in our region, this programme will support communities, artists and practitioners to build new connections through music, art and shared experiences, and participate in cultural activities that they have helped to shape so they reflect their own identities and interests,” says Simon Wales, Chief Executive of Bristol Beacon.

Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, said: “Loneliness and isolation have a devastating effect on people across our region. This fantastic programme aims to show the power that partnership, innovation and creativity have to strengthen social connection, improve wellbeing, and build more connected communities. Regional funding is supporting All Together Now, helping young people into training and providing new opportunities for more than 100 local creatives.”

“All Together Now demonstrates place-based working at its most effective: cross-sector innovators uniting to confront societal challenges and create lasting change. It’s thanks to National Lottery players that the Arts Council can invest in programmes like this across the country – and we hope this is just the start of a more inclusive future here in the West of England,” says Phil Gibby, South West Area Director at Arts Council England.